Limerick boss John Kiely refuses to bite on Big Apple fracas

John Kiely knew better than to wash his team’s dirty linen in public, the Limerick hurling manager twice refusing to comment on the alleged New York bust-up which saw two of his players sent home early from last month’s Super 11s festival.

The Treaty boss, present at the Co-Op Superstore in Raheen for the sponsorship launch of the Munster Senior Hurling League, wouldn’t have needed telling that questions would be coming regarding the behaviour of two Limerick hurlers while stateside.

When approached by a cohort of print journalists, Kiely outlined how he had but five minutes to spare as there was another engagement he had to get to. In fairness to the 2018 All-Ireland winning manager, he sat for longer. Where he was less forthcoming was in discussing the recent breaches of discipline by two of his players — and whether they remain part of the Limerick set-up.

The pair’s infraction relates to a video, widely shared on social media last month, which allegedly shows one panellist involved in a fight on a New York sidewalk. It is further alleged the video was filmed by one of his team-mates.

A disciplinary process was commenced following the sending home of both players, but when asked Thursday what has happened since, Kiely promptly shut the door on this unpleasant chapter.

“We made it clear at the time, when we issued our statement, that there wasn’t going to be any further comment on the matter,” the Limerick manager began.

It is an internal matter. It is like any organisation, I am sure. You are not going to be going out and airing them in public afterwards. It is like all disciplinary matters, they are handled in-house. As far as we are concerned, the matter is closed.

“We are back training since last Tuesday. 2019 has been concluded and we are looking forward to 2020 with great anticipation. We have a lot of changes in our backroom team and a number of players who have joined the group.”

The Limerick manager did confirm the disciplinary process has concluded. When asked was he satisfied with the outcome, he replied, “I said there would be no further comment.”

It remains to be seen if the two players will be part of the Limerick panel for 2020.

“I won’t be issuing any panel to the public for a number of weeks yet. We have a lot of new players who have come into the panel and we want to give them a chance to settle in. You would have seen that Paul Browne and Richie McCarthy have retired. Two fantastic lads who gave huge service. It would be more important to be discussing their immense contribution over the last ten years. Two massive guys in terms of the contribution they brought to our panel.”

Moving the conversation elsewhere, Kiely was supportive of Limerick chairman John Cregan’s call for the introduction of a TV match official. The Limerick county board are to put forward such a motion in the wake of their senior hurlers not being awarded a late 65 during the one-point All-Ireland semi-final defeat to Kilkenny.

Darragh O’Donovan’s sideline cut deflected off the hurl of Cillian Buckley, but with no match official spotting that the sliotar touched a Kilkenny player before going out over the end-line, the umpire signalled wide.

Kiely said Limerick were not sore over the incident. He is in favour, though, of teams being able to request that certain decisions are sent upstairs.

“We are all very much willing to buy into anything that will improve the accuracy of what we are doing on matchday. If we can ensure that everybody goes home knowing the result is the correct result, the right result, and that correct decisions were taken on the day by whatever means is possible without interrupting the flow of the game.

“Nobody wants to end up with a soccer VAR where people are walking off the field to look at a screen. But if there was a mechanism by which we could make a call on the sideline to ask whoever is upstairs looking at these screens, who can see exactly what has happened, to slow it down and get the correct decision. If it takes 30 or 40 seconds to do that through the fourth official, that is a fantastic idea and one I think all management teams would be very supportive of, in terms of ensuring the correct decisions are found.”

He agreed with the suggestion that managers, the same as tennis players, be given a small number of challenges per game.

“We do already have the technology in place. It is just a case of being able to refer to it on matchday, as opposed to waiting for the Sunday Game to highlight it when it is too late to do something about it.

“In every county, the effort these guys are putting in now, nine or ten months before the All-Ireland final.

“You would have to appreciate what they go through to get themselves to those points in their careers, in their season. And for it to be influenced by a poor decision that could be clarified on the day by a simple referral to a video assistant, that would be a very positive move.

“If you have to put it into rule, it is going to take a motion. The motion will stand on its own two feet at Congress.”

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